In certain prior art, the time between cultivation and harvest, treatments (e.g., fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, etc.) are often applied to crops at intervals and quantities that are largely based on the farmer's real-time observations and past experience. A “trial-and-error” methodology for decision making is by no means optimal, but farming knowledge gained from prior experience can be a fairly reliable, yet not optimal predictor of a treatment's effectiveness on aspects of crop health.
Accordingly, there is a need for an automated system for assessing the effectiveness of crop treatment, such as an automated system that can be retrofitted to existing machinery with minimal investment of money and time. Operation of the system should require minimal human intervention.